Cleansing: is it good or bad?

Today, I want to share with you my client, Sara Bradford’s, take on this controversial topic.

From Sara:

I’m still on the fence about it.

As a registered holistic nutritionist, who has been working with clients for over five years, and experimented on herself A LOT, I feel like I’ve seen it all.

I’ve seen transformations come out of a change in diet alone. Life-changing ones that elevate people to another stage in their health.

And I’ve also seen people have the opposite experience. Thyroid conditions arise, low energy follows, a spike in feeling amazing followed by total burn-out, the feeling of overwhelming hunger, digestive issues getting WORSE. All from eating in a way that is SUPPOSED TO be “healthy” or better.

I’ve been around the block and I can tell you MANY reasons NOT to cleanse.

What!?!? Not cleanse? Bet you haven’t heard that too often. But I’m totally serious. There may be reasons you feel CRAPPY AFTER you’ve done one, or a reason why you can’t FINISH one. And it’s not your fault. Our society — and the industry I work in — tends to throw out MANY health food claims. And one is that we ALL NEED TO CLEANSE. Like we are dirty little beings.

But guess what…our bodies are going through a natural detox process all the time. We are CONSTANTLY detoxing. It’s what we are designed to do. Our detox organs are working really hard all the time. And while it makes sense to lighten the load, and clear out detox pathways in order for the job to be done more efficiently — it doesn’t mean we have to go to such extremes to do it.

Here are a pile of reasons to give that cleanse a second thought:

Many Cleanses make you HUNGRY. Being hungry sucks. And it can be done differently.

Many Cleanses do not take into account the various seasons — we are designed to eat seasonally for a reason — because the foods grown then are also what our bodies need. It doesn’t mean you need to go your life without avocado. But re-think that juice cleanse in January.

Many Cleanses do not take into account everyone’s various constitutions. What may be right for one, is not necessarily right for another. Period. For example: Some people digest raw vegetables fine — however, others may as well be eating razor blades as raw vegetables.

Many Cleanses, especially juice cleanses, are high in natural sugar OR filled with green cruciferous vegetables that can wreck havoc on your thyroid, if you’re not careful.

A juice Cleanse (specifically) is pretty darn low in fibre. And while it may release toxins, it provides very littles for toxins to bind to. Therefore, you end up feeling pretty rotten, as those toxins keep circulating. And sometimes it makes it awfully hard to poop, also.

Speaking of poop — nothing brings you closer to your own bowel movements than a Cleanse. Many people go into a Cleanse unaware of this — and are shocked to discover themselves on the toilet for 10 days. Or, possibly even worse, bunged up for the entire time. Ack!

Many Cleanses expect you to do it alone. No support from a team or guidance from a practitioner. The questions and concerns you have go unanswered. The little box of supplements don’t pat you on the back or suggest alternatives. And without support or people that help through the thick and thin of it, you’re more than likely just going to QUIT!

Many Cleanses make you feel TERRIBLE. Headaches, fatigue, bowel issues, achey, hungry, angry, shaky — and you still have to deal with LIFE, kids, work, and all of it.

Many Cleanses make you feel GREAT for a while — then afterwards, when you’ve become addicted to feeling this way and just want to keep going FOREVER…you crash. Because guess what? You’re not SUPPOSED to cleanse all the time. At some point, you need to begin building again.

Stress. Cleanses cause stress. Stress affects digestion. Stress kind of affects EVERYTHING. If you are in an extremely stressed state to begin with a Cleanse is not going to help. It’s going to make it worse.

Is there a solution? Well..yeah there is!

Eat Real Food!

Chances are you’ve had a relaxing yet fairly indulgent summer. The stress of Fall is beginning to take its toll. And you are well aware of the upcoming holiday season.

I’ve designed this 10-Day group food cleanse, that’s kind of an UnCleanse, to help you — with a strong focus on:

Digestion — to make it as soothed and amazing as it could be

Immune System — to build it up for the best winter ever

Self-Care — because that is something many of you don’t get enough of

Yoga — because sometimes all you need is permission

Seasonal — because it’s Fall and you deserve the foods that are going to ground you

There is so much good that comes out of THIS CLEANSE, I don’t even want to call it a Cleanse. So it’s an UnCleanse.

However, if you want to keep playing you can — for an entire 6-weeks. If you want to go farther and longer than 10-days, and transition from cleanse back to a real food (yet indulgent) life, then sign up for the entire program. It’s the 10-day Community Dump + 4 more weeks.

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THE INFORMATION PROVIDED ON THIS WEBSITE IS FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT INTENDED AS MEDICAL ADVICE. THESE STATEMENTS HAVE NOT BEEN EVALUATED BY THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION, OR THE EQUIVALENT IN YOUR COUNTRY. THESE PRODUCTS ARE NOT INTENDED TO DIAGNOSE, TREAT, CURE OR PREVENT ANY DISEASE.